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In his closing submission, Crown prosecutor Trent Hickey told the jury Elphick had threatened Ms Smith and her family on many occasions and regularly prank-called her home.

Mr Livingston told the jury the prank phone calls demonstrated his client might have become obsessed with her family.

"The calls do him no credit at all and that's a matter you will no doubt take into account," he told the jury.

The court heard that in May last year, several weeks before the fire, a bitter custody battle erupted at his child's birthday party at Ms Smith's home in Monash.

The crown alleged Elphick arrived at the property and kicked the front door, before pulling the security screen off the back door and trying to tip over a jumping castle.

The court heard Elphick's DNA had been found on the property's electricity switch box, which was turned off several hours before the fire, but his defence told the jury he had used the box on other occasions.

The jury also heard Elphick was found with petrol on his clothes after the fire, but Mr Livingston said this could have been from other activities.

The Crown relied on telephone records, text messages, and maps of Elphick's alleged location on the night of the fire drawn from signal tower data.